Blackhawks open 2014-15 regular season on Oct. 9

Team to travel to Washington, D.C., for 2015 NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 1

Blackhawks open 2014-15 regular season on Oct. 9The Chicago Blackhawks announced today their 2014-15 regular-season schedule. The organization\u2019s 87th regular season launches when the club visits the Dallas Stars on Thursday, Oct. 9. As previously announced, the Blackhawks will open their home schedule on Saturday, Oct. 11, at the United Center against the Buffalo Sabres.

In conjunction with the National Hockey League, the Chicago Blackhawks announced today their 2014-15 regular-season schedule. The organization’s 87th regular season launches when the club visits the Dallas Stars on Thursday, Oct. 9. As previously announced, the Blackhawks will open their home schedule on Saturday, Oct. 11, at the United Center against the Buffalo Sabres.

The NHL also announced today that the Blackhawks have been chosen to participate in the 2015 NHL Bridgestone Winter Classic, which will be played in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 1, 2015, against the Washington Capitals. This will mark the second Winter Classic appearance, and third outdoor contest, for the organization.

Blackhawks evening games Monday through Saturday at the United Center will begin at 7:30 p.m., with Sunday home contests slated to start at 6:00 p.m. Select games may begin earlier or later due to national television broadcasts.

Twenty-two of the team’s 41 home contests will take place on weekends, including seven Fridays, two Saturdays and 13 Sundays. The Blackhawks host a season-long, eight-game homestand from Feb. 9 to Feb. 24.

Chicago’s longest road trips of the season include a seven-game swing from Jan. 21 to Feb. 8 and a six-game trip from Nov. 20 to Nov. 29.

Under the NHL’s current schedule format, the Blackhawks will play the other six teams within their division for a total of 29 games. Chicago will play five games each against Colorado (two home/three away), Dallas (three home/two away), Minnesota (three home/two away), St. Louis (two home/three away) and Winnipeg (three home/two away), while facing Nashville four times (two home/two away).

Chicago will play the remaining seven Western Conference teams three times each for a total of 21 games. The Blackhawks will host two games against Arizona, Calgary and Vancouver, while traveling to each of those cities for one contest. The team will play one home game against Anaheim, Edmonton, Los Angeles and San Jose, and will play two road contests against each of those clubs.

The Blackhawks will meet each Eastern Conference team once at home and once on the road for a total of 32 out-of-conference games.

For the seventh consecutive season, all 82 Chicago Blackhawks games will be televised in HD on Comcast SportsNet Chicago and WGN-TV, the official television broadcasting partners of the Blackhawks, with Pat Foley and Eddie Olczyk providing the call. Every game in 2014-15 can also be heard on Chicago’s WGN Radio 720, with John Wiedeman and Troy Murray calling the action. Select games will also be simulcast on 87.7 FM The Game. The complete television broadcast schedule will be released at a later date.

Additionally, the team announced its six-game preseason schedule, which includes three home contests (Sept. 23 vs. DET, Sept. 26 vs. NYR and Oct. 1 vs. MTL) as well as three road games (Sept. 25 at DET, Sept. 28 vs. EDM (at Saskatoon) and Oct. 3 at NYR). All three home preseason games will begin at 7:30 p.m. CT.

Information about group tickets for Blackhawks pre- and regular-season games is available by calling (312) 455-7000. Tickets for single games will be available at a later date.